FIELD JOURNALSustainability

in Bartholdi Park

As you explore Bartholdi Park, look for this oak leaf to help you find examples of these features:

Welcome toBartholdi ParkSince 1932, the centerpiece of Bartholdi Park has been the stately cast-iron Fountain of Light and Water designed by Frédéric Auguste Bartholdi for the 1876 Centennial Exposition in Philadelphia. The park was recently renovated as a sustainable garden, certified at the SITES® Gold level by Green Business Certification Inc™.

The park incorporates many best practices in sustainable landscaping including reducing rainwater runoff, reusing plants and materials, locally sourcing sustainable materials, growing native plants, and providing food and habitat for wildlife.

Use this journal to learn about sustainability as you explore Bartholdi Park.

1. Material Conservation

2. Sweetbay Magnolia

3. Dry Fruit

4. Fleshy Fruit

5. Franklin Tree

6. Water Conservation

7. Grass Diversity

8. Oak Diversity

9. Kitchen Garden

10. Carnivorous Plants

Rain Garden

Kitchen Garden

Bartholdi Fountain

Administration Building

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23

45

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8 9

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Please help us conserve this living museum by staying on paths and not picking any plants, fruits, or flowers.

1 Material Conservation FEATURES OF A SUSTAINABLE GARDEN

FLAGSTONEDuring renovation, flagstone in the walking paths was removed from the park and cleaned. It was then returned to create new paths.

WOODInstead of using wood that is over-harvested or shipped from far away, the park’s furniture was made from white oak trees that fell during a wind storm in Virginia.

STONE, COBBLE, AND BRICKThe stone in the Kitchen Garden walls, the cobblestones, and most of the bricks were repurposed from materials previously present in the park.

CONCRETESidewalks previously in the park were broken-up and crushed to provide a base layer for newly poured concrete paths.

A big part of conservation in Bartholdi Parkis selecting sustainable materials, reusing materials, and buying locally.

ACTIVITY: As you walk through Bartholdi Park, find at least three materials and think about your own garden. Are there materials you could re-purpose or reuse instead of throwing them away?

Reused materials

Native plants

Plantconservation

Locally sourced materials

Water conservation

ACTIVITY: What features do you see when you look at this tree? Do you see any birds eating the seeds or caterpillars on the leaves? Note the season and describe the features or animals that you observe:

Sweetbay MagnoliaMagnolia virginiana

Sweetbay magnolia is native to low areas and swamps of the Atlantic Coastal Plain of the eastern United States. Its fragrant white flowers, smooth gray bark, dark red fruit, and sweet-smelling foliage offer year-round beauty and provides important habitat for wildlife species. Native magnolias support more than 20 species of caterpillars, and birds and squirrels eat the bright red fleshy seeds that dangle from the cone-like fruits.

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Sweetbay magnolia flowers bloom in early summer months.

sweetbay magnolia fruit

Season:

Features/Animals:

3 Dry FruitDry fruits protect, store, and disperse seeds that can grow into new plants, just like fleshy fruits do. Their seeds may be dispersed by wind, gravity, animals, or even water!

ACTIVITY: Look at the dry fruits and seeds of the Kentucky coffeetree, butterfly weed, and sweetgum. How do you think the structures help protect and/or transport seeds?

sweetgum (Liquidambar styraciflua ) fruit

Kentucky coffeetree(Gymnocladus dioicus) seeds

butterfly weed (Asclepias sp.) fruit and seeds

Kentucky coffeetree (Gymnocladus dioicus) fruit

FRUITFruits and the seeds they contain provide food for more than just people. Animals rely on fruits and seeds for nutrients, and plants rely on them for propagation. Fruits can be fleshy like a peach or dry like an acorn.

Fleshy Fruit4

Jujube (Ziziphus jujube) is native to China and southeastern Europe. The fruit has a crisp, sweet taste and can be eaten fresh or dried like a date.

American holly (Ilex opaca) is toxic to humans, but is an important food source for wildlife.

The pawpaw (Asimina triloba) is native to most of the eastern U.S. It is an edible, fleshy fruit with a rich, custard–like texture and sweet flavor. While many humans find this fruit tasty, it is also an important food source for wildlife.

ACTIVITY: Can you find another fleshy fruit in the park that your local grocery store may not have? Locate it and use the plant’s label to fill in the information on the next page.

PLANT LABEL

scientific name

common name

native distribution range

familyFleshy fruits have soft tissue surrounding the seeds or pit, like blueberries and peaches. The fleshy part of the fruit is eaten by wildlife and people that act as dispersers by moving the seeds to new places.

pawpaw (Asimina triloba) fruit and leaves

Please help us conserve this living museum by staying on paths and not picking any plants, fruits, or flowers.

Franklin TreeFranklinia alatamaha

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Tiny brown dried fruits (capsules) can be found on the tree during winter months.

Franklin trees are beautiful in the fall, with their bright red foliage.

The Franklin tree, named for Benjamin Franklin, was collected in 1765 by botanist William Bartram along the Altamaha River in Georgia. Bartram grew Franklin trees from the seeds he collected and sold them to patrons of his nursery. Unfortunately, the plant has not been seen in the wild since the early 1800s and is presumed to be extinct.

The Franklin tree survives today in gardens around the world thanks to the collecting and propagating efforts of William Bartram. This early American horticulturist likely created one of the first cases of ex situ conservation of an almost-extinct American species. Ex situ conservation saves species outside of their native habitats (in situ conservation occurs in native habitats). Today, botanic gardens around the world protect over 40% of known threatened plant species.

THINK: Why do botanic gardens work to preserve rare and endangered plants?

Franklin tree flowers bloom in the summer and give off a sweet fragrance.

Water Conservation6

Gardens can play an important role in the conservation and protection of water resources. In cities, impervious surfaces like roofs, streets, and sidewalks prevent rainwater from soaking into the ground. Rainwater runoff can transport pollutants to rivers, lakes, and streams, endangering aquatic ecosystems and drinking water. Rain gardens, like those in Bartholdi Park, protect the environment by capturing water and allowing it to soak into the ground.

THINK: In many cities, like Washington, D.C., much of the rainwater flows over impervious surfaces and through combined sewer systems into rivers, lakes, and oceans. Pollutants carried by the water can pose a threat to the environment.

In your area, do you know where rainwater ends up? What can you do to help conserve water resources?

FEATURES OF A RAIN GARDEN

To learn more about rain gardens and protecting water resources visit: www.USBG.gov/RainGardens

Chesapeake blue crabCallinectes sapidus

striped bassMorone saxatilis

Plants tolerant of both wet and dry soil

Well draining soil

Depression

Grass Diversity7

Indian grassSorghastrum nutans

blue wood sedgeCarex flaccosperma

switch grassPanicum virgatum

Did you know grasses come in many shapes, sizes, and colors? The grass family (Poaceae) has nearly 12,000 species. While turf grass is great for a picnic, large areas planted with one species, called a monoculture, is not usually healthy for the environment. Monocultures don’t provide a diversity of resources for wildlife and tend to require a lot of resources to grow properly. For example, turf grass lawns need lots of water, fertilizer, fuel, and time to maintain.

Planting native grasses and closely related, similar-looking sedges in your garden creates a beautiful landscape, provides habitat and food for wildlife, and can help conserve resources since they are adapted to the natural conditions of the area.

ACTIVITY: Find one of the native grasses or sedges illustrated on these pages and record some things you notice.

Can you identify other grasses or sedges? Hint: look for the Poaceae or Cyperaceae family name on the plant label.

Oak Diversity 8

pin oakQuercus palustris

willow oakQuercus phellos

red oakQuercus rubra

Texas red oak Quercus texana

swamp white oak Quercus bicolor

bur oakQuercus macrocarpa

swamp chestnut oak Quercus michauxii

There are around 450 species of oaks (genus Quercus). These trees are often keystone species in an ecosystem, meaning that they are very important in providing habitat and ensuring the survival of many insects and other wildlife.

Oak trees provide food and shelter to animals of all sizes including squirrels and deer. Studies have identified over 500 butterfly and moth species that are supported by oaks!

ACTIVITY: Use these drawings to help you identify oaks in the park. Once you have found a favorite oak, spend a few minutes drawing it below. Are oaks growing where you live?

9 Kitchen Garden

Herbs, vegetables, and fruits are delicious, and growing them at home conserves resources by reducing the distance they have to travel from the plant to your plate.

ACTIVITY: Do you recognize all the fruits and vegetables in this garden? Find the Asian pear— it produces beautiful, golden fruits that are large and delicious! Find another fruit or vegetable and describe or draw it below.

CONSERVATION AT HOME:

Fruits or vegetables all have a specific planting and harvesting time. Do a bit of research to determine the best time to plant fruits and vegetables in your area.

Please help us conserve this living museum by staying on paths and not picking any plants, fruits, or flowers.

Asian pear (Pyrus pyrifolia)flowers and fruit

Carnivorous Plants10

yellow pitcher plantSarracenia flava

hooded pitcher plantSarracenia minor

purple pitcher plantSarracenia purpurea

Carnivorous plants, such as the pitcher plants pictured here, grow in forest and wetland habitats with soils low in nutrients. These plants have evolved to capture and digest insects, which allows them to obtain some of the nutrients the soil lacks.

Unfortunately, development has destroyed many carnivorous plants’ habitats and endangered some species. Growing plants at botanic gardens is one way to save them from extinction. Can you think of another way?

Continue Your Journey• Pick up the field journals for the Conservatory and

Regional Garden to have fun learning about plants in those areas of the U.S. Botanic Garden!

• Remember the fleshy and dry fruits? Explore the National Garden and Conservatory to see fruits from around the world.

• Interested in carnivorous plants? Visit the Regional Garden to learn about their habitat or the Conservatory to find tropical pitcher plants (Nepenthes spp.).

• The USBG maintains nearly 500 threatened plant species. For more information: www.USBG.gov/PlantConservation

Continue Your Observations

You can contribute many of the observations you made today to Project Budburst, which collects flowering, fruiting, and leaf drop timing information. This improves our understanding of how plants respond to changes in climate locally, regionally, and nationwide. Learn more at www.budburst.org

Make a difference at home! Landscape For Life is a program that demonstrates how to create a beautiful garden that supports and benefits the natural world. Learn more: www.landscapeforlife.org

U.S. BOTANIC GARDEN CAMPUS MAP

ADDITIONAL OBSERVATIONS IN BARTHOLDI PARK: ADDITIONAL OBSERVATIONS IN BARTHOLDI PARK:

U.S. Botanic Garden100 Maryland Avenue SW

Washington, DC 20001www.usbg.gov

U.S. Botanic Garden100 Maryland Avenue SW

Washington, DC 20001www.USBG.gov